Should we wait until the fall?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:School psych here! If we get a referral now, we are expected to complete it before the end of the school year. Referrals received after June2 go to summer team. I currently have 14 kids to finish testing, so your son would be number 15. I will assess all area of suspected disability but if I have extra time and am curious about something that I saw in the scores , I will give additional tests or do additional observations or interviews. However, it’s not really possible to do that if the referral is received so late. Testing a child in May is hard because they usually have to miss fun activities in their classroom.. Also, one of my favorite tests to assess surface dyslexia, test of orthographic competence, can’t be given until a child is 7, and intelligence isn’t considered “stable” until age 7 so scores are never as valid when I evaluate younger students. I tell parents all of this and they frequently don’t trust me and think that I am trying to gate keep their child’s right for an IEP- but sometimes they do trust me, and I always evaluate their child the following year and frankly, do a better job because the law is one thing and the actuality of what is possible during the last 23 days of schools when I have fourteen other kids to test…is another. Parents, I recommend referring your child early, and not waiting until late April/ May.

So there are certain tests for dyslexia that require a child to be 7?

Yes. There are other ways to assess but this particular test is actually 7 and up. And I just checked and the newest version is actually 8 and up

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:I'm confused about why it would take 2 months for testing, but I think (1) defer to next year could work only if the same players who know your kid will be involved but as PP said - move forward now - and (2) indeed make the most of this summer to boost reading through tutor, lab school, sienna, whatever else!

It’s the legal timeline. I’m confused why and how you think school staff have wide open calendars to complete tasks in five minutes? A request for testing isn’t planned and school teams need adequate time to test, write a report, share the report/results with parents, and schedule an eligibility meeting.

Wow someone is snippy on the special needs board - we don't do that here. Just parents helping parents and learning along the way. No one is suggesting that testing be completed in 5 minutes.

Yes, the perspective that schools actually know what they are doing and may act in the best interest of the child is quite often shouted down on this board.
I can’t be snippy, but parents can spread false information about policies, special education, and staff? And constantly write that school teams are incompetent and parents shouldn’t listen to them? Talk about 1-sided censorship that is rampant on the special needs forum.

Fale information. Fake news. Not accurate. As usual from parents on this forum.


I have 2 children with IEPs. Yes, I think the school in general has the best interest of children in mind. However, extra support and especially an IEP is not something that is done overnight. There is a big difference in getting interventions through school and having an IEP with goals and mandated support.

Ask for an evaluation and IEP NOW!!!!

I think your ignorance is bliss.
Interventions from a reading specialist doing OG are solid. It’s why so many of you parents praise tutors, who are not special education teachers. Yet all you insist on receiving l special education services, while you also harshly criticize and discredit special education staff. You make no sense. You have no idea. You are not professionals, you are scared and distrustful, and you (appallingly) advise other parents to follow in your foot steps. There are so many things wrong here. You’re the problem in so many ways and it is just so sad, because you continue to act like victims.

Your post makes no sense. The sped teams at the multiple schools my kids have been in have all been dedicated teachers. But there are about four of them in these massive schools. There is no way they can give one child the support needed to move the dial on dyslexia. And often they know little about dyslexia to begin with- maybe a seminar one weekend.

For those of us who can, get the evaluation and get private tutoring. Do not rely on the public schools. They simply cannot do it. Not because they don’t want to but because they don’t have the resources.